Strawberry plant named ‘Petaluma’

ABSTRACT

‘Petaluma’ is a short-day (June bearing) cultivar similar to ‘Camarosa’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,708) but with greater productivity, higher quality fruit, and earlier production; it is similar to ‘Ventana’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 13,469) and ‘Benicia’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 22,542), but with a more healthy plant and higher quality and firmer fruit.

Genus and specie: The strawberry cultivar of this invention is botanically identified as Fragaria×ananassa Duch.

Variety denomination: The variety denomination is ‘Petaluma’.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a new and distinctive short-day type cultivar designated as ‘Petaluma’, which resulted from a cross performed in 2008 between two unreleased germplasm accessions Cal 5.97-7 and Cal 5.165-1. Accession Cal 5.97-7 was chosen as a parent due to its very high early productivity, large and high quality fruit, and moderate plant vigor. Accession Cal 5.165-1 was chosen as a parent due to its vigorous but open plant habit and firm, large and flavorful fruit, and extended productivity.

‘Petaluma’ was first fruited near Irvine, Calif. in 2009, where it was selected, originally designated Cal 8.20-602, and propagated asexually by runners. Following selection and during testing the plant of this selection was designated ‘C231’. It was later designated ‘Petaluma’ for introduction into commerce and for international registration and recognition. Asexual propagules from this original source have been tested in Watsonville, Calif. and near Irvine, Calif. and to a limited extent in grower fields starting in 2010. The cultivar is stable and reproduces true to type in successive generations of asexual reproduction.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

‘Petaluma’ is a short-day (June bearing) cultivar similar to ‘Camarosa’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,708) but with greater productivity, higher quality fruit, and earlier production; it is similar to ‘Ventana’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 13,469) and ‘Benicia’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 22,542), but with a more healthy plant and higher quality and firmer fruit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The Figures depict various characteristics of the ‘Petaluma’ cultivar.

FIG. 1 shows the general flowering and fruiting characteristics of the plant in a field planting.

FIG. 2 shows a typical leaf at mid-season.

FIG. 3 shows representative mid-season fruit.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

‘Petaluma’ is typical of short-day strawberry cultivars and produces fruit over an extended period when treated appropriately in arid, subtropical climates. The production pattern for ‘Petaluma’ is similar to that for ‘Camarosa’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,708), although it is earlier to initiate fruiting with most cultural treatments. ‘Petaluma’ initiates fruiting concurrently with or slightly earlier than ‘Ventana’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 13,469) and has a similar production pattern to ‘Benicia’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 22,542) when established in very early fall. The fruit for ‘Petaluma’ is firmer and more uniformly conical than fruit from unreleased parent variety Cal 5.97-7; and the ‘Petaluma’ plant is more compact, with thicker leaves compared to Cal 5.97-7. The fruit for ‘Petaluma’ is lighter and more evenly colored, and more uniformly conical than fruit from unreleased parent variety Cal 5.165-1; and Petaluma produces fruit earlier in the season. ‘Petaluma’ will be of special interest for winter plantings, where ‘Camarosa’, ‘Ventana’, and ‘Benicia’ have been successful, and in summer plantings where ‘Chandler’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 5,262) and ‘Camino Real’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 13,079) have been successful.

-   Plants and foliage: Fruiting plants of ‘Petaluma’ are slightly     taller and more open than ‘Ventana’ and are similar in size to     ‘Benicia’ throughout most of the production season with most     cultural treatments. ‘Petaluma’ plants are similar in size to     ‘Camarosa’ in most production environments. Comparative statistics     for foliar characters near mid-season are given for ‘Petaluma’ and     three comparison cultivars in Table 1. Individual leaflets for     ‘Petaluma’ are slightly larger than any of the comparison cultivars,     and are more elongated than for ‘Benicia’. The leaflet base is     obtuse and the leaflet margin is serrate to crenate. Leaves     (including petioles) for ‘Petaluma’ are slightly shorter than for     ‘Ventana’ and ‘Benicia’. Petioles for ‘Petaluma’ are generally     longer than those of ‘Ventana’ and ‘Camarosa’. The adaxial (upper)     and abaxial (lower) surfaces of leaves for ‘Petaluma’ are similar in     color to, or darker than those for ‘Camarosa’ and ‘Benicia’; and     darker and less yellow than for ‘Ventana’ leaves at midseason.     Leaves of ‘Petaluma’ have similar concavity to ‘Camarosa’, and are     less concave those for ‘Ventana’. Serrations at midseason are less     pointed than for ‘Benicia’, similar in shape and number to ‘Ventana’     and ‘Camarosa’.

TABLE 1 Foliar and plant characteristics for ‘Petaluma’, ‘Camarosa’, ‘Ventana’, and ‘Benicia’. Cultivar Foliar Character ‘Camarosa’ ‘Ventana’ ‘Benicia’ ‘Petaluma’ Plant height (mm) mean 227 277 245 319 range 190-320 250-300 220-260 300-350 Plant spread (mm) mean 368 425 414 401 range 300-465 375-525 360-500 400-560 Mid-tier leaflet Length (mm) mean 85 89 80 96 range 70-95  80-110 70-90  80-120 Width (mm) mean 79 77 80 72 range 65-90 70-90 75-80 60-80 Mid-tier leaf Length (mm) mean 230 231 264 244 range 200-290 180-260 220-310 210-280 Width (mm) mean 143 153 161 141 range 120-170 140-160 150-180 120-160 Leaf components Petiole length (mm) mean 110 113 136 130 range 90-150 80-120 110-160 120-140 Petiole diameter (mm) mean 3.6 5.3 4.9 4.5 range 3-4 4-7 4-6 4-5 Petiolule length (mm) mean 5.1 6.9 5.3 5.6 range 4-6 6-8 4-6 5-7 # leaflets leaf 3 3 3, rarely 4 or 3 5 Leaf convexity most flat to flat to very flat to concave to slight concave concave concave convex Serrations number/leaf 20.8 20.6 20.5 20.4 range 19-23 semi- 18-25 semi- 18-23 18-22 semi- shape pointed pointed Round to pointed semi-pointed Leaf light- moderate- moderate- heavy pubescence moderate heavy light Petiole pubescence density heavy moderate- heavy heavy heavy direction perpendicular perpendicular perpendicular perpendicular to acropetal Petiole color (Munsell) 2.5 GY 8/9 7.5 GY 9/4 7.5 GY 8/10 7.5 GY 8/7 Stipule length (mm) mean 27.2 24.0 31.1 29.9 range 20-34 20-30 25-40 22-34 Stipule color (Munsell) core 2.5 Y 6/8 2.5 GY 8/9 2.5 Y 9/4 2.5 GY 9/8 margins 7.5 Y 6/7 5 GY 8/8 5 GY 8/8 5 GY 8/8 Stolon base 11.7 15.2 16.5 13.0 diameter (mm) Stolons per 22.7 18.8 22.9 21.1 nursery mother plant Venation pattern pinnate pinnate pinnate pinnate Color (Munsell) 7.5 GY 8/7 7.5 GY 9/4 7.5 GY 8/7 5 GY 8/9

-   Disease and pest reaction: ‘Petaluma’ is moderately resistant to     powdery mildew (Sphaerotheca macularis), but is moderately     susceptible to Anthracnose crown rot (Colletotrichum acutatum), and     moderately resistant to Verticillium wilt (Verticillium dahliae); it     is intermediate in resistance to Phytophthora crown rot     (Phytophthora cactorum) and common leaf spot (Ramularia tulasnei)     (Table 2). When treated properly, it has tolerance to two-spotted     spider mites (Tetranychus urticae) equal to that for the comparison     cultivars. ‘Petaluma’ is tolerant to strawberry viruses encountered     in California.

TABLE 2 Disease resistance scores for ‘Petaluma’ and three comparison cultivars; all scores were obtained in evaluations conducted in 2012-2013. Phytophthora Verticillium Colletotrichum Resistance Score Resistance Score Resistance Score Genotype (5 = best) (5 = best) (5 = best) ‘Camarosa’ 3.6 2.8 2.3 ‘Ventana’ 2.1 2.9 3.0 ‘Benicia’ 3.5 1.6 2.5 ‘Petaluma’ 3.9 4.2 2.2

-   Flowering, fruiting, fruit, and production characteristics:     ‘Petaluma’ is similar to other California short-day strawberry     cultivars (e. g. ‘Ventana’, ‘Camarosa’, and ‘Benicia’) in that it     will flower over an extended period and into spring or summer, given     appropriate local temperature and horticultural conditions. With     most planting treatments ‘Petaluma’ produces fruit as early as     ‘Ventana’ and ‘Benicia’ and earlier than for ‘Camarosa’. Comparative     statistics for flower and fruit characters near mid-season are given     for the four cultivars in Table 4. The primary flowers for     ‘Petaluma’ are similar in size to ‘Camarosa’ with a calyx that is     distinctly larger than the corolla on primary fruit; the flowers are     smaller than for ‘Benicia’ and ‘Ventana’. The calyx for ‘Petaluma’     varies in position but frequently has a slight indent early in the     season and is even with the fruit later in the season; each primary     flower has 5-6 petals, similar to the comparison cultivars on     average. The fruit shape for ‘Petaluma’ is consistent throughout the     season, and is typically medium to long conic. It is easily     distinguished by fruit shape from ‘Camarosa’ (shortened and     flattened conic), or ‘Ventana’ (medium symmetrical conic), and     ‘Benicia’ (often flattened). External and internal fruit color for     ‘Petaluma’ is similar to that for ‘Camarosa’ and ‘Benicia’, darker     than for ‘Ventana’ (Table 3). Achenes vary from yellow to dark red,     and are even with the fruit surface or slightly indented.

TABLE 3 Foliar and fruit color characteristics for ‘Petaluma’ and three comparison cultivars. Cultivar Color Character ‘Camarosa’ ‘Ventana’ ‘Benicia’ ‘Petaluma’ Leaf color (CIELAB) Adaxial L* mean 38.3 39.2 35.0 37.4 range 37.3-39.8 36.0-41.1 33.3-36.4 35.2-39.0 a* mean −12.2 −14.3 −11.7 −11.6 range  −9.5-−15.5 −12.9-−16.7 −10.3-−13.5  −6.6-−15.6 b* mean 16.9 20.6 16.9 15.7 range 13.3-19.9 17.3-24.8 13.1-21.7 11.2-19.4 Munsell 5 GY 5/5 2.5 GY 6/8 5 GY- 5/6 7.5 GY 4/4 Abaxial L* mean 52.5 53.2 48.5 52.0 range 51.3-54.6 51.8-54.6 41.7-52.3 46.0-53.7 a* mean −13.1 −14.2 −13.5 −13.16 range −11.4-−14.9 −13.9-−14.7 −11.9-−16.8 −11.1-−15.8 b* mean 20.5 21.7 20.0 20.3 range 18.9-22.4 20.3-23.3 17.9-21.9 19.3-21.9 Munsell 7.5 GY 8/7 10 GY 8/7 7.5 GY 5/7 7.5 GY 8/9 Fruit color (CIELAB) External L* mean 38.6 38.1 36.0 38.0 range 34.7-42.7 37.6-39.0 34.2-37.5 35.7-41.3 a* mean 34.4 33.4 31.2 32.0 range 33.6-36.2 29.4-38.7 26.6-36.3 33.3-35.8 b* mean 22.5 19.2 14.2 16.6 range 18.8-29.3 17.8-21.1 10.6-17.3 13.0-21.8 Munsell 7.5 R 4/11 5 R 4/12 2.5 R 4/0 7.5 R 4/11 Internal L* mean 50.2 48.6 44.0 48.4 range 46.6-53.3 46.2-52.3 40.8-47.0 45.2-52.6 a* mean 30.8 28.9 30.9 27.9 range 25.6-35.4 23.5-33.0 27.8-33.6 20.7-31.6 b* mean 30.1 31.3 27.5 30.2 range 28.0-32.0 30.6-32.5 24.6-28.8 25.4-35.3 Munsell 7.5 R 5/13 7.5 R 6/13 5 R4/2 5 R 6/11 Achene color 2.5 Y 7/10 10 Y 8/11 5 R3/7 7.5 R 4/11 Munsell

TABLE 4 Flower and fruit characters for ‘Petaluma’ and three comparison cultivars. Cultivar Character ‘Camarosa’ ‘Ventana’ ‘Benicia’ ‘Petaluma’ Petal number mean 5.8 6.2 6.1 5.6 range 5-7 5-7 5-7 5-6 Petal shape apex truncate to truncate to truncate to truncate to slightly slightly slightly slightly base obtuse obtuse obtuse obtuse margin attenuate attenuate attenuate attenuate entire entire entire entire Petal length (mm) mean 11.5 13.3 11.7 11.6 range 10-13 11-15  8-13 11-13 Petal width (mm) mean 12.0 14.6 14.4 13.0 range 10-14 13-16  8-13 12-14 Flower position most even even to even to even to (relative to some exposed exposed exposed foliage) exposed Calyx diam.(mm) mean 40.4 47.0 50.8 34.7 range 33-47 40-50 47-53 26-38 Corolla diam.(mm) mean 26.1 39.0 39.6 27.0 range 23-31 35-45 39-41 23-30 Sepal length (mm) mean 14.3 16.6 16.4 13.9 range 12-18 14-19 13-20 12-16 Sepal width (mm) mean 8.3 8.4 8.4 10.2 range  7-10  7-10  7-10  8-12 Sepal color 5 GY 7/10 5 GY 5/5 10 GY 8/7 5 GY 8/8 (Munsell) Pedicel length (mm) mean 155 115 183 198 range 130-180  90-140 150-210 170-200 Pedicel diameter (mm) mean 2.7 3.5 3.7 3.1 range 2-4 3-4 3-5 2-5 Pedicel color 7.5 GY 8/7 5 GY 8/9 2.5 GY 8/9 2.5 GY 9/8 Fruit shape Fruit length (mm) mean 46.0 48.4 46.5 45.8 range 40-48 47-52 41-52 40-53 Fruit width (mm) mean 37.4 42.6 42.4 40.3 range 33-46 40-46 36-46 36-46 Length/ width ratio 1.26 1.17 1.08 1.11 range 1.0-1.4 1.1-1.2 1.0-1.2 1.1-1.2 subjective Obovate-flat Medium Medium Medium-long conic conic conic Primary/ secondary fruit comparison size (subjective)  50-70%  55-75%  55-65%  55-75% shape similar similar shape similar shape similar shape shape, more conic Extent/size of small-absent small small-absent small-absent hollow core Calyx position indented- indent- even- even- neck reflexed indented indented size relative to equal or less equal or less equal or equal or fruit than fruit than fruit greater than smaller than diameter diameter fruit diameter fruit diameter Seed position indented- mostly even even- even to extruded indented extruded Adherence of weak intermediate weak reflexed Calyx to Fruit Flower and plant measurements obtained on April, 2012, fruit measurements May 10-20, 2012.

‘Petaluma’ has been tested under a variety of cultural regimes, and optimal performance is obtained when nursery treatments and nutritional programs similar to those for ‘Camarosa’, ‘Ventana’, and ‘Benicia’ are used. In general, plants of ‘Petaluma’ are greater in vigor than ‘Camarosa’, and are similar in vigor to ‘Ventana’ with very early season planting. ‘Petaluma’ retains excellent fruit quality in summer planting systems.

When treated with appropriate planting regimes, ‘Petaluma’ has similar sized fruit and produces individual-plant yields greater than any of the comparison cultivars (Table 5). Commercial appearance ratings have also been substantially better than those for all of the comparison cultivars, especially in comparison with ‘Camarosa’. Fruit for ‘Petaluma’ is substantially firmer than fruit from ‘Ventana’ and similar in firmness to the other comparison cultivars. Subjectively, ‘Petaluma’ has very good flavor. The fruit will be exceptional for both fresh market and processing, and will be useful for home garden purposes.

TABLE 5 ‘Petaluma’ and three comparison cultivars evaluated near Watsonville, CA in 2010-12. Yield Appearance Score Fruit Size Item (g/plant) (5 = best) (g/fruit) Firmness ‘Camarosa’ 1,815 2.8 27.1 11.6 ‘Ventana’ 2,080 3.3 30.1 10.2 ‘Benicia’ 1,649 3.4 33.1 11.1 ‘Petaluma’ 2,307 4.2 32.6 12.2 All plants for these trials were harvested from a commercial nursery near Macdoel, CA on October 15-16, and transplanted after 6-7 days supplemental storage. Fruit harvest was initiated in early April and continued through the last week of August. (52″ 2-row beds, 17,300 plants/acre) 

What is claimed is:
 1. A new and distinct cultivar of strawberry plant having the characteristics substantially as described and illustrated herein. 